The Hope To Go On
The heart of the believer and his being is like a boat sailing down a river...the river representing the dunya...the believer will be successful in reaching his destination navigating the river for as long as he doesn’t allow the water from the river seep into the boat to the point that it overwhelms it..
(Unknown-Because I cannot remember who said it…)
Assalamu alaykum warahmatullahi wabarakatu, dear sister.
Trust you are are doing well, striving and thriving.
This quote was sent in 2018. I remember at that point I was struggling with happenings in my environment that were completely out of my control. It was a tough time and I somehow just felt overwhelmed with it all.
6 years later and I am back here. My environment is going through a phase and it is just a lot. For the first time (Well, maybe second), I feel like I have been living in a bubble and I can truly see what the environment really looks like, not so pleasant I tell you. But, like I told my friend who has been accommodating my many Du’a requests, ‘It is the Dunya after all, you cannot expect too much from it’.
I would normally rise in situations like this, kinda like a knight in shining armour, trying to be a light of hope of some sort to those around me. But I can’t, I am over it and I just want my mummy..lol (May Allah grant her Al-Jannah Firdaus).
In between sleepless nights and prayers that Things don’t fall apart, I have found a lot of comfort in the Qur’an. In it, I found healing, hope, light and just the strength to keep pushing .
Also reminded me to take my pain to Allah always, as humans we always be imperfect, this life is a huge struggle against our Nafs and Shaytan for all of us, without Allah’s guidance and mercy we will all be astray.
One of the reflections that came up for me yesterday when I was reading the opening verses of Surah Al-Baqarah was to ‘inspire myself with the hope and yearning of an eventual destination’. A destination where there will be no anger, injustice, unfairness, poverty or any of the issues we have to deal with on earth. I really like that reflection especially because of how brilliantly it ties into the opening quote I shared. When you remember that it does not end here, it gives you a greater sense of purpose, it helps you to manage your expectations, it saves you from the worst speech and actions and it reminds you to focus instead on Allah’s pleasure, so that Inshaa Allah, we will part of those who the angels will rush to welcome from every gate with the calls of Salam.
I don’t have much to say today, except that we should stay grounded in the Qur’an, put our hopes in Allah and try not to be swayed by the Dunya. We are NOT in control of this world and Allah’s will always be done.
May Allah do what is best for us always.
May He make us people of Taqwa.
May He elevate our status to those who He is most pleased with.
May He help us to guard our tongues and direct our actions to only things He approves of us.
May He help us remember that it does not end here and grant us and our families the highest of Jannahs.
On Sunday, I attended a fabulous session that centered around difficult conversations and their impact on making relationships work. It was soooo good! It was put together by MICA and the facilitator was Jubril Saba, tooo many gems in there, but you have to get to it yourself.
Next is our Seeker’s Circle for the month, super excited that our guest is a counsellor, could not have thought of a better person for these times. Her experience dealing with the challenges people face in life will come in handy in preparing for Ramadan! You all have to admit that this session is a steal!
And lastly, I hope you find this beautiful reflection by Sh. Yaseer and Imam Omar Suleiman not only powerful but healing. I believe everyone needs to hear it because we all go through hardship and reminders help to keep us going.
Till next week, in shaa Allah.
We leave you in Allah's care,
One of us at IbadahPlug